17 hours ago
9
You have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load.
Tensions are heating up in Brazil as the nation enters the final week of former President Jair Bolsonaro’s trial on attempted coup charges.
Sept. 7, 2025Updated 4:47 p.m. ET
Thousands of Brazilians took to the streets on the nation’s Independence Day on Sunday in dueling political protests, opening a tense week that is expected to conclude with the conviction of former President Jair Bolsonaro.
The largely peaceful demonstrations played out in cities across the nation.
On the right, Brazilians draped in Brazilian and American flags protested the criminal prosecution of Mr. Bolsonaro on charges that he attempted to hold on to power after losing the 2022 election. On the left, people called for Mr. Bolsonaro’s imprisonment and denounced efforts by President Trump to protect the former leader.
By Sunday afternoon, aerial images from multiple protests left little question that Mr. Bolsonaro’s supporters significantly outnumbered protesters on the left, showing that — even amid his legal troubles — he remains a significant political force in Brazil.
But will it matter?
On Friday, Brazil’s Supreme Court is widely expected to convict Mr. Bolsonaro on charges that he attempted a coup. He could face more than 40 years in prison.
Mr. Trump has been trying to pressure the Brazilian authorities to drop the charges, imposing 50 percent tariffs on Brazilian imports and sanctions against the Brazilian Supreme Court justice leading the case, but to little avail. His efforts have so far only strengthened support for President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Mr. Bolsonaro’s leftist rival, while the court has pushed ahead with the trial.
